Last week, I briefly mentioned the Freshman 15 in my “How to Be Productive in College”. For those of you who don’t know what the Freshman 15 is, it’s an expression that refers to a weight gain during the first year of college and it’s typically a gain of 15 pounds.
I’ve been really conscientious of my weight, physical health, and mental health ever since I was cleared to play sports again after my ankle injury. I gained about 30 pounds throughout the time I was injured and I feel like I wasn’t happy with how I looked at all. Since then, I’ve worked my tail off to get back to a place where I’m about where I should be in tennis and I’ve maintained my flexibility from dance as best I can. In no way am I exactly where I want to be physically, but I’m feeling much better about myself and I feel like I’m in a much better mental state. By eating right, getting good sleep, and working out, I’m getting closer to my goal.
Coming to college, I was worried that all of my hard work would be destroyed. With all of the food available at practically any hour of the day and all the free time, I could easily gain back 15+ pounds. To stay healthy and beat the freshman 15, here are some of the things I’m doing:
- Drink lots of water. Drinking water is not only good for your body in general, but it’s good for the skin. Drinking a glass of water before eating can also be good since it makes you feel fuller. I try to drink around 60 oz. of water a day from my Hydroflask and then I have water with every meal.
- Exercise, exercise, exercise. Whether you just walk around a track, lift weights, do some form of cardio, or play a sport, it’s important to work out. This keeps your body in a good state (as long as you’re not overdoing it) and working up a sweat is a good natural detox. Some of my favorite things include the elliptical, circuit training, and various leg, arm, and core workouts. If you’re looking for some fun, different workouts, Pinterest is a great place to search.
- Avoid stress eating or bored eating. I’ve been guilty of this before, but this is a big way to eat excess calories. If you’re in your room and find yourself bored, find something to make yourself busy! And whatever it is, try not to resort to eating. If you do feel the need to stress eat or you’re bored and want to eat, make it something healthy, like celery or carrots.
- Limit the sweets. Too much sugar can be a bad thing. I’ve really tried to cut back on dessert foods and really sweet things. If I decide that I am in need of a cookie or some ice cream, that’s the only dessert I get for the day. So if I had ice cream after lunch, I tell myself no desserts at dinner. Just be aware of what’s on your plate.
- Have a colorful plate of food. Going off of that last sentence for my last tip, watching what’s on your plate is really important. My rule of thumb is this: If all the food on your plate is the color of “fried-brown”, you need to change something. Make sure there’s some veggies or fruit with every meal. Your body will thank you.
These are just some of the things I’ve done to beat the Freshman 15, and I hope that by having these good habits, I’ll keep it that way the rest of this school year. Honestly, keeping these habits for the rest of my life wouldn’t hurt either!
I strongly believe that self-improvement is awesome and everyone should work toward becoming the best version of themselves. If there’s a certain something you don’t like about yourself or there’s something you feel could be better or stronger, work toward that! Sitting around and complaining will get you nowhere. It’s honestly much more satisfying and inspiring to have a goal and work toward it and then look back and see how far you’ve come. With that in mind, I hope you all have a great week! Until next time 🙂